Carrier bag



Patented Dec. 20, 1949 time T OFFIC CARRIER BAG Herman (3. Orchard, St. Louis, Mo., assignor to Orchard Paper Company, a corporation of Missouri Application April 27, 1946, Serial No. 665,549

3 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in paper bags, and more particularly to such bags of the envelope type, wherein means are provided for carrying the bag from the store.

The principal object of my invention is to so construct a bag of this description, that it will have as a component part thereof, a flexible cord which will serve as a carrying handle for the package, said cord being secured to the rest of the bag structure that it will be quite strong and safe, and with a minimum tendency to tear through the bag when the latter is carried under load.

One of the important objects of this invention is to form such a flexible carrying cord with a pair of free ends, and to secure these ends to the bag by means of stitching extending laterally of the bag, so that the load or strain between the bag and handle is transmitted in said lateral direction instead of merely longitudinally of the bag, and whereby heavier loads can be carried safely as compared with other means of handle securement.

Another object of my invention is to reinforce the bag adjacent its vicinity of securement to the handle, by means of a strip of paper extending transversely of the bag flap, and secured in place by the same stitching that is used to anchor said flexible handle to the flap.

An added object of the invention is to provide means on said bag, associated with the flexible carrying handle, whereby said handle may be threaded through registering apertures through the opposed walls of the bag and thence brought upwardly into normal carrying position, so that the flap to which said handle is anchored will be held in its bag-closing position during the carrying of the bag.

Still further objects of this invention are to provide a bag of the kind described, that will be relatively simple and inexpensive to make and use, neat in appearance, very strong when considering the strength of the paper itself from which the bag is formed, and which will be otherwise satisfactory and eflicient for use wherever deemed applicable.

Many other objects and advantages of the construction herein shown and described will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains, as will be more clearly apparent from the disclosures herein given.

To this end, my invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and combination of and the uses mentioned, as will be more clearly pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the drawings, wherein like reference char-' with the cord threaded through the registering apertures provided in the bag walls; and

Figure l is a cross-sectional detail of substan tially the same portion as seen in Fig. 3.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, wherein I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, there is shown a shopping bag, or carry-out bag, and in this instance of the envelope type of bag. These bags are in general use, particularly for relatively light loads, so that the buyer of the merchandise can easily and readily carry out his purchase from the store. In order that he can comfortably carry several such purchases, means have been provided on the bags to enable this use, as will be more clearly hereinafter described.

The bags may be made of any suitable size,

- shape and material, and in the present instance at 12 and 3, respectively.

The bag is formed so that a closure flap 4 adjoins one of the pair of opposed walls, as for example the back wall 3, projecting therebeyond for the predetermined distance desired. This flap is connected to the wall 3 along the transverse fold line 5 extending the full width of the bag. Thus far, the bag as described is commonly used.

In order to reinforce the walls at the region taking the load, the short lengths of paper 6 and i may be glued to the outer surfaces of the front and back walls adjacent their upper ends. While these reinforced areas are flat, superimposed on one another, the apertures or openings 3 and t are died out, these apertures thus being in registry or alignment. It is to be noted that it is preferred that the top of the aperture be approximately the same distance below the top edge of the bag wall 2 that the central portion of parts or elements herein shown and described, 55 the flap 4 extends beyond the wall to which it is connected, so that when said flap is brought into its folded position, as will soon be set forth in greater detail, the apertures 8 and 9 will not be covered by said flap, as shown more clearly in Figs. 3 and 4.

A length of string or some other cord or strap is arranged with its free ends Ill-I brought toward one another, so that the intermediate portion of the string is thereby doubled to provide a loop or bight II. After the ends of the string are secured in place, the bag may be carried by the handle thus formed, on the arm or from the hand of the person carrying the bag.

In order to distribute the load over a large area of the flap, and thus enable the bag to be used for relatively heavy loads, rows of stitching l2--l2 extend laterally or transversely of. the bag, through the flap and the free ends of *the string. A pull on the loop therefore, is transmitted along the length of the rows 'of stitching before it is fully absorbed by the flap, andtherefore the load stress travels a longer distance than if the string were merely glued in securement, or if otherwise fastened to transmit the load longitudinally of the bag.

In order to still further reinforce the bag subjected to greatest strain, a reinforcing strip l3 may be superimposed on the inner face of said flap, substantially fully between the free edge of said flap and the fold line of the same, and for a-substantial distance to either side of the center of. said flap. If desired, this reinforcing strip, of a :paper of suitable strength, may be secured in place by the same rows of stitching 12-42 that anchors the ends of the string in place, and may tion,andthe load thus carried will be transmitted,

not only by the pair of reinforced opposed walls, adjacent the threading aperture, but will be transmitted transversely through the rows of stitching.

Having thus described my invention, it is obt vlous that various immaterial modifications may be made in the same without departing from the spirit of my invention; hence I do not wish to be understood as limitingmyself to the exact form, arrangement, construction and combination hereinshown and described, or uses mentioned, except as limited by the state of the art to which this invention appertains, and the claims hereunto appended.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. The combination with a bag having front and rear walls, and a closure flap extending from one of them, said walls provided with registering apertures therethrough adjacent said flap, of a flexible cord for carrying the bag and for holding said flap closed, a reinforcing strip of paper superimposed transversely across'said flap, the free ends of said cord interposed between said flap and strip, and spaced apart rows of stitching extending across said flap and entirely across said strip through said free ends of the cord So that the load is transmitted through and along said rows of stitching when the bag is carried by said cord after the latter has been inserted through the registered apertures to close said flap.

2. In a bag having a front wall and a rear wall having registering apertures therethrough adjacent one end, a closure flap extending from said end of one of said Walls, a reinforcing strip of paper superimposed to extend transversely along said flap, a flexible cord substantially doubledto provide a carrying loop and a pair of 'free ends, and a row of stitching transversely across said reinforcing strip and flap and reinforcing strip for substantially the full width of the latter to either side of center of the latter and comprising the sole securement betweenthe reinforcing strip, cord and bag, said cord loop being inserted through said registered apertures to close the flap and so that the bag may be carried from said loop.

3. The combination with a bag having a front and back wall and a flap extending from the end of one of said walls, of afiexible cord for carrying the bag, said cord having its ends laterally offset in opposite directions and extende'd'for an appreciable distance,- a reinforcing 'strip' of paper on said flap and overlying said offset ends of the cord, and a row of stitching through said strip and cord and extending substantially continuously to the side edges of the strip and through the lateral offsets of said cord to anchor said cord and transmit load between the bag and the cord.

HERMAN C. ORCHARD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 708,234 Laird Sept. 2, 1902 1,418,705 Gro'ch June 6, 1922 1,690,046 Ament Oct. 30, 1928 1,910,449 R'Ose 'May 23, 1933 

